February 19, 2019

4:00 pm to 5:00 pm

Application Deadline Extended to February 20

Want to share your story of recovery? Would you like to help others with your experience?

We are always searching for individuals and family members from diverse backgrounds to be a part of our peer support movement. Begin by attending CMHA Central Alberta Peer School. You can learn to use your lived experience with mental health and/or addiction issues to support your community and make a difference.

Although we are just beginning to offer Peer School in Central Alberta, we are modeling our program after the CMHA Calgary Peer School which provides 70 hours of free training, 50 hours of paid internship and opportunity to connect to a Peer Supporter Community of Practice.

Peer support helps us improve the lives of people living with mental health and/or addiction issues and we truly appreciate the dedication of those looking to be a part of this movement. Those interested in peer support can use their newly gained skills to support others one-on-one, through groups or as ambassadors and educators. In Calgary, trained peers are an integral part of their Recovery College. Our vision includes establishing a similar (but smaller) Recovery College in Central Alberta. You may want to look at http://www.recoverycollegecalgary.ca/.

Qualifications and Skills Required

You will have lived experience of being on a personal recovery journey or experience in supporting a family or loved one.

Comfort level sharing your story of recovery with others;

Availability to complete extensive training and an internship over five months;

Willingness to be mentored by a trained peer.

Familiarity with peer support and have a deep commitment and understanding of the recovery model.

How to apply for Peer School

Please submit a cover letter and/or write an essay along with your resume explaining to us why you may be a good fit to jobs@reddeer.cmha.ab.ca.

Your cover letter/essay should include answers to the following:

What do you think being a person with lived experience would add to your ability to work with other people with mental health concerns (including addictions) or family members of people with mental health concerns (including addictions)?

Can you see a downside–what would be the challenges?

We are not expecting a traditional resume! Don’t worry if you have a spotty (or even non-existent) work or educational history, what we do want to see is:

Contact information

Skills, talents, and accomplishments you are proud of

Any mental health and wellness education you may have done in the past. This could be a PCN, CMHA, or Alberta Health Services workshop, course, or group–even an on-line program!

If you do have work or formal education to list, you can include that, too!

If your application is successful, a police check and reference checks will be conducted (a history of charges will not in most cases exclude you), and you will be invited to an interview which will be led by fellow individual or family peers and CMHA staff.

Current Opportunities

We will accept applications through February 20, 2019. People will be contacted for interviews in early February. We expect to train 8 individual and family peers beginning in March. We will do Peer School application Q&A sessions at the CMHA Learning Annex on Tuesday January 15, 22, and 29. There is no need to preregister for these–just drop in.